VillageVines changes name, downplays discounts

VillageVines, a reservations and deals platform for high-end restaurants that launched in Chicago last year, is changing its name and revamping its website to de-emphasize its dining discounts.

The New York-based startup is now called Savored and is launching in five new markets: Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Miami and Denver. The company was already operating in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. Savored is also unveiling a new partnership with Zagat, giving members access to free ratings for Savored restaurants. In Chicago, those places include MK, Les Nomades and N9NE.

Co-founder Benjamin McKean said Savored’s model appeals to top-tier restaurants that have “completely resisted these daily deal sites.” On Savored, restaurants set the days and times for which they want to release tables. Savored members pay $10 to make a reservation and receive 30 percent off their bill without needing to present a physical coupon at the restaurant.

“When we did our last wave of launches back in September of last year, we had impressive names but not ‘oh my God’ names,” McKean said. “We certainly do in every single one of our markets this time…We’re completely re-launching the website with a completely new feel. It ties to the idea that we don’t want to be a deals site. We want to be much more.”

The redsigned website downplays the 30-percent discount, which McKean said will be presented as “insider pricing” as part of a Savored membership instead of the main attraction. This shift underscores how crowded and noisy the daily deals industry has become in just a few years, with hundreds of competitors now offering discounts on restaurants and other local businesses. Chicago-based Groupon is preparing for an initial public offering, with many skeptics questioning whether the company can sustain its revenues as deals from multiple providers keep flooding the market.

McKean said Savored will be introducing a feature called “Savored Experiences” later in the summer, structuring offers such as a four-course tasting menu for $120. This kind of offer puts Savored in competition with deal providers such as Gilt City and Travelzoo, which also package high-end dining experiences and offer them at a discount.

McKean said 56 percent of Savored users make more than $100,000 a year, with 25 percent of Savored users making more than $200,000 a year. More than 500 restaurants are signed up for the platform.

“We’ve always been able to - through our business model - work with these top-notch restaurants, yet I think from the consumer perspective…we never fully conveyed that,” McKean said. “The emphasis was always still the discount, and that’s a big shift we’re making.”

Savored also announced that Michael Lazerow, chief executive of social media marketing firm BuddyMedia, is making an undisclosed investment in the company and joining the board of directors. In December, Savored raised $3.75 million from investors led by Hearst Interactive Media.